7 Tips to Keep Customers Motivated After the Holidays

Be Creative to Bring In
Customers After the Holidays

This article is written for salons and spas, but the concepts apply to any other industry that experiences a slump after the holidays.  

The New Year is full of promise and adventure for most people. Full of  resolutions and good intentions. Everyone is optimistic about the future.  

At the same time, the bills from the holidays have started to roll in and the reality of holiday spending has started to sink in. The new year can inspire salon customers to cut back on spending. Salon services may be seen as an not needed, especially in comparison to food, housing and gasoline. 

If they don't cut it out altogether, there may be a tendency to do it themselves (DIY) or spread the frequency of services out over a longer time. With these challenges, what's a salon owner to do? This is the time to do some planning and answer some initial questions that will help you balance out the peaks and valleys in sales. So the first question is what opportunities are available after the holidays that will bring in customers, that could be offered, even in December to make this time less stressful? Starting to think of the slow time before it happens will increase the likelihood that the slump will be a thing of the past.  

Here are some ideas to get you started: 

The month of January can provide some opportunities that may not be obvious.  There are always opportunities to connect with your customers each time they walk in the door. You can provide them with incentives that will ensure a steady stream of customers during this down time.  

1. Offer your customers a referral bonus for spreading the word to friends and family. If the person comes in for service, reward your customer.  For example, give them a promotional items like the ones shown in the picture that have the discounted service and a promo code on them. When a new customer refers the promo code they will receive the discount and so will the person who referred them. Tie it to a specific time frame that coincides with a slow time for your business.
2. January has New Year's Eve, which is a time that people want to look good. Offer a new year's eve special for everyone that comes in to obtain services during the last week of December. This will energize sales and set the stage for January.
3. January is also National Thank You Month and what better time to say thank you to your customers for their business! Saying thank you goes a long way toward gaining more business. Give out a promotional item as a thank you. The promotional items in perfect over other items because it doesn't double duty. It reminds customers of your business for brand recognition, and it's a great way to say thank you. As an added incentive, you could give a larger gift (grand prize) to the customer who brings in the most referrals.
4. It's also Book Blitz Month, and the perfect time (if your customers are into books), to have a Book of the Month, kind of like Oprah's Book Club where you have discussions about the book on certain days of the week.  Those activities can draw additional customers to the shop where they can be serviced while discussing the book.
5. February is a big month for couples with Valentines Day. Start planning your Valentine's Day specials. Maybe you want to offer specials for men and women.  Offer discounts if couples receive service on the same day. 
6. February is also American Heart Month, February 1 is National Wear Red Day. Order red t-shirts or heart shaped promotional items to give away to promote awareness. Sponsor a fundraising page and take pictures to post on your sponsor website. Have all your stylists wear red t-shirts with your own message and take pictures to post online.   Takes the Go Red for Women Challenge and forward the proceeds to the American Heart Association.
7. There are many weddings planned for Spring. In March, offer packages for the bridal party and mother of the bride... And the list goes on.

Advertise specials, events in social media like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.  If possible take reservations, registrations or check ins on social media to provide a way to track your results.  Give customers a discount for "liking" your Facebook page. Use signs and posters inside your shop to advertise as well.

Once the new customers arrive, make sure to keep them motivated to return over the long term. Customers are trying to make the most of their moneyand if you keep this in mind and find ways to reach out to them, making it convenient for them to reach back you will never have a serious shortage of customers.

There are plenty of other opportunities to make a connection with customers during this down time. Use incentives like loyalty cards, gift certificates, and promotional giveaways. For more information please review our article Using Events to Market Your Business. 

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